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Lutz, W. 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7975-8145
(1994).
Mauritius finds the magic mix.
People and the Planet 3 (3) 10-12.
Abstract
The experience in Mauritius highlights the central importance of investments in human resources, particularly female education, to sustainable social and economic development. Fertility on this island declined from 6.2 to 3.2 children per woman between 1963-72, and this unprecedented fertility decline was followed, in the 1980s, by dramatic economic growth. This scenario challenges the traditional belief that economic growth is an essential precondition for fertility decline. Increasing age at marriage and decreased marital fertility resulting from national family planning programs contributed equally to the fertility decline in the 1960s. Female secondary education increased simultaneously with reductions in fertility--a trend that resulted in increased age at marriage, a reduction in desired family size, increased receptivity to contraceptive use, and higher labor forced participation rates. Increased participation of women in the labor force in turn, was key to the economic growth of the export-oriented textiles industry. Future economic development depends on the education of a highly skilled labor force capable of addressing the need for structural changes in the economy and environmental protection measures.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Research Programs: | World Population (POP) |
| Depositing User: | IIASA Import |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Jan 2016 02:03 |
| Last Modified: | 05 Aug 2023 05:00 |
| URI: | https://pure.iiasa.ac.at/3855 |
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